The Arizona Coyotes announced on Monday that goaltender Carter Hutton was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for future considerations.
Official: We’ve traded goaltender Carter Hutton to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for future considerations.
Details: https://t.co/TyPc051xtw
— Arizona Coyotes (@ArizonaCoyotes) February 22, 2022
Carter Hutton Traded To The Toronto Maple Leafs
“Carter Hutton traded to the Leafs” is definitely not something anyone saw coming on a Monday night. However, that’s exactly what happened. For Arizona, the return remains to be seen. Nevertheless, moving Hutton, who appeared in just three games this year at the NHL level, doesn’t affect their roster or season outlook at all.
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Carter Hutton Adds Depth in Net for Leafs
In the trade for Carter Hutton, the Leafs bolster their depth between the pipes. This season came with difficulties, punctuated by his .741 save percentage and 0-2-0 record. Granted, that’s a small sample size and on one of the weakest rosters in the league. That being said, the last two years trended in the wrong direction as well. In three seasons with the Buffalo Sabres, his save percentage dropped from .908 (2018-19) to .898 (2019-20), to .886 (2020-21) before the abysmal numbers this year.
Over his ten-year NHL career, Hutton played for the Chicago Blackhawks, Nashville Predators, St. Louis Blues, Sabres, and Coyotes. In that time, he collected a 94-90-27 record through 235 career games. Originally an undrafted netminder, Hutton paved his way and owns a career save percentage of .908 paired with a 2.76 goals-against average.
What This Means for the Future
Ideally, the Leafs would prefer to never need Hutton for a game. But, in today’s NHL, goaltending depth is as important as ever. Toronto, fortunately, owns a perfectly healthy roster at the moment. That includes starting goaltender Jack Campbell, boasting a 23-8-3 record and .922 save percentage this season. Behind him sits Petr Mrazek, whose .899 save percentage leaves something to be desired.
Beyond those two, the Leafs also still have Michael Hutchinson and Joseph Woll. The latter posted better numbers in his four games this year than Hutchinson did. Hutton brings more experience than those two combined at the NHL level, even though he’s older and brings even weaker recent stats to the table with him.
The “future considerations” for Arizona mean the trade still has some return to offer the Coyotes. Whatever that is will likely tip the balance one way or another in determining who won or lost the deal. In all likelihood, though, it won’t impact either club much.
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